Despite living in Texas for 16 years, I've never been through a hurricane and only had close calls with tornados while living in Dallas. As I sit here, waiting for Omar, checking the National Hurricane Center website every few minutes, I realize that with a little bit of luck, the hardest part of this experience is happening right now - waiting for the uncertain.

Like jumping off the tall diving board at the pool for the first time as a kid... you've heard the tales of others that have jumped, yet from below it doesn't look all that scary. Climbing up that ladder and standing on the top, however, reveals a frighteningly different perspective and those few seconds before the jump, not knowing what to expect nor how bad it will be, is the true terror of the experience - not the jump itself.

Meanwhile, phone calls have been made and all island friends are all in safe places. The church across the street pictured in the video above in the final stages of having it's hurricane shutters put on. Traffic on the street in front of our house has almost stopped and even if it had not, the noise of the increasingly strong and steady rain makes it hard to hear anything else.

Even the animals know hurricane Omar is coming, as our house is being invaded by thousands of ants. Our cats have refused food all day and the ever present noises of the turtle doves, free roaming chickens and goats have subsided hours ago and been replaced by the faint sound of thunder.

The mood in our house is tense but the 5 year old twins are young enough to be sufficiently distracted by the tent put up in the hallway and are busy collecting blankets and deciding who gets to sleep on which side.
The Anguillian Electric Company will cut power as soon as Omar comes close and I'm told that during previous hurricanes, power was out for weeks.
Since most of Anguilla has no central water system, no power means no water all water pumps from each cisterns are electric. Provided our propane tank doesn't get blown away, we should at least be able to cook.

Even though going through Omar here in Anguilla isn't a choice like jumping off the tall diving board - odds are, we will land feet first, soaking wet and no worse for the wear.